How Much Sleep Do Adults Need?
The familiar 'eight hours' rule is a rough guide, not a target everyone must hit. Here are the age-based ranges Australian sleep experts point to, where they come from, and how to tell ordinary variation from a genuine sleep problem.
Where the numbers come from
The Sleep Health Foundation, Australia's national sleep advocacy body, bases its age-group guidance on a 2015 expert panel report from the US National Sleep Foundation, published in the journal Sleep Health. The panel reviewed the research and reached consensus on how much sleep healthy people in each age band generally need.
These are ranges for healthy people, not prescriptions. Genetics, health, activity and life stage all shift what a particular person needs, so the ranges describe what is typical for most people rather than a precise figure you must achieve every single night of the week.
Recommended hours for adults
For young adults and adults, the National Sleep Foundation panel recommends 7 to 9 hours of sleep. For older adults, aged 65 and over, the recommended range is slightly narrower at 7 to 8 hours. The Sleep Health Foundation echoes this, noting that most adults need between 7 and 9 hours a night to feel refreshed and function well.
In practice, the best everyday measure is how you feel. If you wake reasonably refreshed, stay alert through the day without relying heavily on caffeine, and do not doze off when sitting quietly, your sleep is probably meeting your needs, even if the clock says something slightly different.
Children and teenagers
Younger people need considerably more sleep. The panel's recommended ranges are 14 to 17 hours for newborns, 12 to 15 hours for infants, 11 to 14 hours for toddlers, 10 to 13 hours for preschoolers, and 9 to 11 hours for school-aged children. Teenagers are advised to get 8 to 10 hours.
These totals include daytime naps for babies and young children. Teenagers often find the recommendation hard to meet, because their body clocks naturally shift later while school start times stay early. If a child or teen seems persistently tired, it is worth raising with a GP.
The 'may be appropriate' zone
Alongside each recommended range, the National Sleep Foundation panel also described a wider band of durations that 'may be appropriate' for some individuals. In other words, sleeping a little more or a little less than the headline range is not automatically a problem if you feel well and function normally.
Consistently sleeping well outside the range, or needing far more sleep than usual, is a different matter. A sudden change in how much sleep you seem to need can be worth discussing with a doctor, particularly if it comes with low mood, fatigue or other new symptoms.
What counts as a sleep problem?
Everyone has the odd poor night, often around stress, travel or illness. Insomnia is more persistent. Healthdirect describes chronic insomnia as trouble falling or staying asleep on at least 3 nights per week for at least 3 months, along with effects on how you function during the day. The Sleep Health Foundation uses the same threshold.
It is also common. According to healthdirect, more than 1 in 10 people have at least mild insomnia at any given time, and it is more common in women and older people. Other warning signs, such as loud snoring or heavy daytime sleepiness, can point to different sleep disorders worth checking.
Quality matters as much as quantity
Hitting the right number of hours does not guarantee good sleep. Sleep that is broken up by frequent waking, or disturbed by breathing pauses, can leave you tired even after a long night in bed. That is why daytime alertness is often a better clue than a sleep tracker's total.
If you regularly spend enough time asleep but still wake unrefreshed, keep a simple diary for a fortnight, noting bedtimes, wake times and how you feel. It gives a GP useful information if you decide to seek advice, and can help you spot patterns yourself.
This guide is general information drawn from the sources below. It does not suggest that any product treats a sleep condition. If you are worried about your sleep, see your GP.